What do you think?

Disgraced U.S. cyclist Floyd Landis revealed new cheating allegations in a series of messages to sponsors and officials, alleging that former teammate Lance Armstrong not only joined him in doping but taught others how to beat the system and paid an official to keep a failed test quiet.

9 Responses

I was a fan of Floyd Landis until this story emerged, and enjoyed watching him at the Tour of Batenkill. Now, not so much. So, I guess his philosophy is if I’m going down, so will the rest of the cycling world.

In 2006, when first asked if he had used performance-enhancing drugs, Floyd remarked, “I’m gonna say no.” After all the brouhaha about suspect testing methods, the sad psychological back-story, tons of money donated to the defense cause by fans, and a book proclaiming innocence, I think those of us with kids knew all along–from that first moment–that only liars talk that way.

The question now is: can we trust anything that comes out of this damaged guy’s mouth? General consensus amongst the people who pay attention to such things is that Armstrong probably did dope at one time but is clean now. Same cam probably be said for most of the peloton, I imagine. Testing is a different world now. The likelihood of getting away with it has been greatly diminished. That said, it takes a special kind of stupid to get caught with synthetic testosterone, EPO, or someone else’s blood in your body these days. I’m not one to naively believe that the sport is magically clean now because I want to. And I don’t have a particular allegiance to my fellow native Texan, but I am pretty sure that, logically, far fewer racers cheat now than did only a few years ago. However, some will always be drawn to fraudulent means of advancement (in pretty much every sport, I might add).

Whether or not Landis is telling the truth… now, his statements and the timing of them say much more about his than they say about Armstrong. Where was his conscience when he was originally charged with doping?

my thoughts are that professional cycling is irrelevant and the opinions and lifestyles of the riders are like movie stars…..slightly interesting, to some people more than others, but not worthy of serious thought.

I do believe him.
And the reaction of the cycling world reminds of the what happened in baseball when finally some players started talking about steroids. First, everyone tried to shoot the messenger and attack whistleblowers’ credibility — remember the testimony before Congress? Eventually, steroid users were either caught or admitted they had lied previously (Mark McGwire).
Let’s be frank enough to admit that pro cycling has had a big and long-running doping problem and that encouraging whistleblowers to come forward is needed to clean it up.

Lance does have a one-in-a-million body, granted. And he’s never tested positive to the point it affected his career. And this is, the estimable Rick Telander’s opinion aside, a tempest in a teapot.

The purest and most encouraging type of bicycle racing in the US today is collegiate club racing. USCF racing of any category is self-selecting and not welcoming of new and/or slower riders as road running is. If you’re off the back you are a lesser being…and, as those with talent inch up the Cat ladder and maybe to the pros, they’ll seek out any edge.

I remember reading an interview with longtime German pro Udo Bolts several years ago, in which he lamented the fact that cycling was so demanding he hadn’t eaten a sausage in 10 years, which was very hard for a German…but later he admitted to doping.

So I ride at 12 mph avg and eat sausage, and couldn’t hang in a Cat 7 downhill time trial. I like to watch races but anymore they’re just like the circus. Can’t get too worked up over their legitimacy, and the guys who keep on doping at least have a choice the circus animals don’t.

The sad thing is that when someone succeeds, others feel so comfortable assuming that is cannot possibly be a combination of good genes and determination.
I wonder if these same comments would be made if they were to Lance’s face and not to a computer screen.
It is so easy for us to call public figures liars. Lance said he has never doped. I believe him. Landis has proven he is a liar, yet he still gets media time whenever he makes his accusations.
Yes, I am partial to Lance. He beat cancer and he has dedicated his life to helping others.

Kathleen Lisson

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